The Savannah Harbor Foundation and The Westin Savannah Harbor Golf Resort & Spa are seeking entries for the 12th annual Gingerbread Village: Savannah’s Edible Design Competition — a gingerbread-or-whatever-material-you-can-find house contest. Entries are divided into two categories, adult (18 and older) and student (17 and younger).

“We’re excited about taking our ultimate food competition to the next level by soliciting culinary experts, having the event being professionally judged, and bumping up the prizes to get more and better entries,” said Mark Spadoni, Westin general manager. “We’ve realized the talent and potential of the local and regional community, and we really want to reward that.”

The top prize in the adult category is $1,500. The top prize for students is $500.

Gingerbread Village was created in reaction to the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks as an opportunity to celebrate family, togetherness and embrace life even during uncertain times. This year, the village has moved under the umbrella of a new series of holiday events called Festival of Lights — a six-week program of fantastic light displays and nightly festive family events on Hutchinson Island starting Nov. 23.

Entry forms must be received by Nov. 1 and can be downloaded at westinsavannah.com/gingerbreadvillageform. Call 912-201-2048 for more info. Designs are due Nov. 18 and 19, with judging on the night of the 19th. Judges will include celebrity chef Jamie Deen.

“Thousands of visitors come by and it really has become a tradition for the last 12 years,” Spadoni said. “We wait with great anticipation for a large turnout, and hope to elevate this to a bigger and better display than what we’ve had in the past.”